Gas engine



Maiy 25, 1937. A. F. BEALS ET AL 2,081,139

' GAS ENGINE Filed Nov. 20, 1935 2 sheets-sheet 1 JNVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

3 A. F. BEALS ET AL 2,081,139

GAS ENGINE Filed Nov. 20, 1953 2 Sheets-Shet 2 1N VEN TOR.

Wharf/55am: y f//776/ P d ATTORNEY.

Patented May 25, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GAS ENGINE Albert F. Beals, Kansas City, Mo., and Elmer E. Fudge, Salina, Kans, assignors to Universal Rotary Motors Company, Salina, Kans, a corporation of Kansas Application November 20, 1933, Serial No. 698,848

2 Claims. (01. 123-51) Our invention relates to internal combustion shown in section to disclose a gear train for opengines and more particularly to engines of the erably connecting spaced crank shafts and. to

four cycle type having opposed cylinders. show a combustion chamber and valve assembly Although internal combustion engines have, of the engine. 5 through continued developments, been improved Referring more in detail to the drawings: 5 to the point where a high degree of efiiciency is I designates an engine. block of the opposed attained, a great deal of power created by exylin r yp in lud n a n l Cylindrical P plosion of the fuel gases is still lost, due princition 2 terminating at its ends in respective crank pally to the position of the piston in relation to cases 3 and 4 joined thereto by inner end walls the crank when a charge is ignited and combus- 5 and 6. Y

tion occurs. The sides, tops and bottoms of the crank cases In internal combustion engines of conventional are c o d by e pec Walls "L and and vertical design, the compressed fuel charge is igb a ing b acke l0 o d integrally With the nited at the instant when the piston has moved end Walls 5 and 6, a d the p and bottom W 5 to within a few degrees of top dead center, or its serve to jou a emnk Shafts ii and 12 provided 15 nearest approach to the cylinder head, so that in the respective crank e S 3 a d 4 a held e p opelling power of the explosion will b in rotatable relation with the brackets by'beareffective on the piston throughout the greatest ns aps l3 secured o the brackets by bolts l4 possible portion of piston travel. Obviously the in t us mannermaximum thrust of the ex losion is thus exerted M unted n th yli d al p r 2 a l v s on the piston when it is in a line almost directly l5 a d is o d y reeeiving respective Pistons longitudinal with the crank on the crank shaft, I! and. I8 connected by rods l9 and 20 to the resulting in strains, vibrations, and loss of power. Spaced Crank Shafts l l and It will further be evident that the travel of the In d r t r s power exerted on each of 5 piston at each end of its stroke is comparatively the pistons to e Common driven member, a m

slow and consequently a great deal of th exploor power shaft 2| is journalled on a transverse sive energy is dissipated in heat through the porcenter line of the blocks in bearings 22 formed tion of the cylinder wall adjacent the combustion in a continuation 23 0f the Side Wells 1 and i5 chamber. operably connected to the crank shafts by a main 0 As a further result of the relatively slow moveea 24 fi d on the P e Shaft d rotatably ment of the piston at the ends of its stroke, fuel n t d w t gears 25 n h an a ts is drawn at comparatively slow velocity into the through id e gears 25 a d I combustion chamber during the intake stroke of Th tra n f a s s preferably l s d y a the piston which necessitates the use of large e d p at 28 lemevably'seeured y 0 1 c ws 9 5 valves, particularly in high speed engines. to inwardly flanged extensions 30 of cover or The principal objects of our invention are, end plates 31 and 32 closing the outer ends of therefore, to utilize a large percentage of this he cra k Ca and held in Sealed e e t loss of energy for rotating the crank shaft, and W th h Cases by bolts to incidentally reduce the strains and vibrations As is shown in Fige Cylindrical portion of 0 in the engine; to draw the fuel into the combusthe engine block iS p d With an pp r ee 'e tion chamber at a higher velocity; and to convert P t 34 Communicating With a Combustion Chama greater portion of the expansive force of the 35 defined by Valve housing 36 d by a exploded charge into mechanical energy before head 37 having an inset We11 33 a d from the being dissipated in heat losses through the cylhousing and secured y vertical a d ntal 5 inder wall. bolts 39 and 40 to the engine block and valve In accomplishing these and other objects of our g: espectivem invention, we have provided improved details of Provided 1n the valve si a e the usual structure, the preferred form of which is m intake and exhaust chambers 4| and 42 communtrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein: icating respectively with intake and exhaust 0 Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of an engine manifolds 43 and 44, and controlled by valves constructed in accordance with our invention 45 and 4B normally held in seated position in the a d disclosing a P Of Cooperating c a k-S aft chambers by springs 41 sleeved over valve stem the crank of one shaft being positioned slightly portions 43 slidably mountedin guides 49, in advance Of the crank on the other shaft. The alve springs are confined between an 5 2 s e p an Vi w f h engine With portions outer wall 50 of the valve housing and washers 5| secured on the valve stems in any approved manner, and the portion of the block containing the springs is segregated from the remainder of the block by the upper portion of the cylinder and by a partition wall 52 dividing the crank case 4 from the valve housing, the chamber thus formed for the valve springs being closed by a cover plate 53.

Formed integrally with the wall 52 are cylindrical bosses 54 extending into the crank case 4 for seating sleeves 55 in axial alignment with the valves adapted to slidably receive push rods 56 having adjustable contact with the ends of the valve stems as indicated at 51 and having opposite ends provided with heads 58.

The push rods are actuated in the usual manner for opening the valves by cams 59 fixed on a cam shaft 60 journalled in bearings 6| in the crank case 4 in parallel relation to the crank shaft ll.

Other conventional equipment for completing the engine structure includes an oil pump 62 mounted in an oil reservoir 63 provided by bolting a pan 64 to the lower edges of the side walls I and to the bottom walls 9, the pump being driven by a shaft 65 geared as shown at 66 to the cam shaft.

' A distributor 61 is also driven from the cam shaft as in ordinary practice and spark plugs 68 are threaded into the head 31 for igniting compressed charges of gases. A pulley or fly wheel 69 may further be mounted on one end of the power shaft in accordance with common practice.

While the general arrangement of the opposed pistons, spaced crank-shafts, valves, etc., may not be materially different from similar engines previously invented, we accomplish the really important and novel results of our invention by so meshing the train of gears that one piston will begin its cycle of movements approximately twenty degrees in advance of its cooperating piston, as is illustrated in Fig. 1, and the effects of such an interconnection of the pistons and consequent operation of the engine is as follows:

Assuming that both pistons are at the inner ends of their strokes and are moving outwardly on the intake stroke, the piston ll, due to the advanced position of the crank on the shaft II, will move faster than the piston l8 having its rod in longitudinal alignment with the crank on the shaft l2, and will consequently draw fuel through the inlet valve at a higher rate of speed than in the conventional engine of this type wherein the piston begins its movement with respecii to the crank similarly to that of the piston 8.

Upon return strokes of the pistons the inlet valve closes and the charge of fuel is compressed within the combustion chamber and between the piston heads, it being apparent from the disclosure that a space is reserved between the heads of the pistons when they arrive at their inner limits of travel to produce a continuation of the combustion chamber.

The compressed fuel is now ignited by means of the plug and although the impact of the explosion strikes both piston heads, the piston i8 is momentarily stationary due to the longitudinal alignment of its rod with the crank on the shaft l2. The crank of the shaft ll, having already passed its inner dead center, therefore receives the initial impact of the explosion conveyed thereto through the piston l1 and rod 19 and in turn transmits this thrust without appreciable loss to the train of gears and the power shaft.

Immediately thereafter the piston l8 reaches a similar position with reference to the crank on the shaft l2 and the remaining force of the explosion is expended on the oppositely moving pistons and is transferred into rotary motion through both crank shafts.

Because of the comparatively rapid initial movement of the piston I1 on its power stroke and the immediately following movement of the piston IS, the force of the explosion is utilized for propelling the pistons before much of its energy can dissipate as heat into the cylinder walls, and as a result of the slightly advanced position of one piston in relation to the other, strains and vibrations in the engine are greatly reduced.

On the final or exhaust stroke, the spent gases escape through the opened exhaust valve into the exhaust manifold and because of the pistons moving rapidly toward each other a more complete scavenging of the cylinders is obtained than is possible in conventional engines havlng pistons moving toward a fixed cylinder head.

While we have shown an engine having a pair of parallel opposed pistons, it will be obvious that more pistons may be added in parallel rows for increasing the power of the engine.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an engine of the character described, a cylinder having a lateral combustion chamber, opposed power pistons in the cylinder, means for admitting fuel to the lateral combustion chamber, a pair of crank shafts, one having its crank in advance of the other, connecting rods connecting the cranks with the respective pistons, and means interconnecting said crank shafts to effect operation of the crank shafts at the same speed and to effect differential movement of the power pistons relatively to the lateral combustion chamber.

2. In an engine of the character described, a cylinder having a lateral combustion chamber provided with inlet and outlet ports and a port communicating with the cylinder, valves controlling the respective inlet and outlet ports, op-

\ posed power pistons reciprocable in the cylinder,

a pair of crank shafts, one having its crank in advance of the other, connecting rods connecting the cranks with the respective pistons, and means interconnecting the crank shafts to effect operation of the crank shafts at the same speed to differentially reciprocate the pistons to and from said port connecting the combustion chamber with the cylinder.

ALBERT F. BEALS.

ELMER E. PUDGE. 

